LASTMA lists roads to avoid during Buhari’s Wednesday visit (Guardian)
Lagos State Traffic Management Agency (LASTMA) Tuesday advised Lagosians on how to avoid gridlocks during President Muhammadu Buhari’s Wednesday visit. Buhari will be on an official visit to Lagos State on Wednesday, 24th April 2019, during which a number of state projects will be commissioned. LASTMA in a statement said traffic diversions are going to be observed in some parts of Ikeja to have a hitch-free movement for President Buhari, motorists and residents to plan their journey in advance. Read more
Lagos Gov poll: AD, LP candidates sue winners Sanwo-Olu, Hamzat (Punch)
Candidate of the Alliance for Democracy, Mr. Owolabi Salis; and Prof. Ifagbemi Awamaridi of the Labour Party, have taken winner of the 2019 Lagos governorship election, Babajide Sanwo-Olu and his deputy-elect, Obafemi Hamzat, to the State Governorship Election Petitions Tribunal. However, the Lagos State governor-elect on Tuesday said he was confident of victory at the Tribunal. The News Agency of Nigeria reports that Sanwo-Olu expressed the optimism when he came to the tribunal sitting at the Ikeja High Court Complex to sign a response to two petitions challenging his victory at the March 9 governorship poll. Read more
Buhari failed on security, says Soyinka (Nation)
Nobel Laureate Prof. Wole Soyinka has slammed President Muhammadu Buhari for his “slow response” in dealing with the terror caused by Fulani herdsmen across many parts of Nigeria. He said Buhari has failed on the security threat posed by herdsmen, adding that he was repeating the mistakes of his predecessor, Goodluck Jonathan, in not dealing with the Boko Haram menace in a timely and adequate fashion. “The man dies in all who keep silent in the face of tyranny,” he said. Read more
Dogara to Tinubu: You’re ignorant about budgetary process, watch your language (Punch)
The Speaker of the House of Representatives, Mr. Yakubu Dogara, has replied the National Leader of the All Progressives Congress, Asiwaju Bola Tinubu, over the latter’s allegation that the National Assembly has been padding the national budget for four years. Dogara, in a statement by his Special Adviser on Media and Public Affairs, Mr. Turaki Hassan, carpeted Tinubu, describing him as “ignorant of the budgetary process.” The statement reads in part, “Only the ignorant with dubious academic certificates will say the maker of a document has padded the document that only he can constitutionally make. Read more
NCAA to demolish over 7,000 telecommunication masts (Nation)
Over 7,000 telecommunication masts and towers belonging to Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) providers erected nationwide may soon be pulled down by the Nigerian Civil Aviation Authority (NCAA). Its spokesman, Sam Adurogboye disclosed this on Tuesday. The NCAA has given affected operators a 30-day ultimatum to comply with its directive of getting the relevant clearance. According to him, the NCAA is compelled to recourse to this line of action because the telecommunication providers blatantly failed to obtain the statutory Aviation Height Clearance (AHC]. He said without Aviation Height Clearance, these masts and towers constitute danger to safety of air navigation. Read more
Kwara lawmakers pass bill barring gov from sacking council chairmen (Punch)
A Bill for a law to amend the Kwara State Local Government (Amendment) Law No. 3 of 2006, which makes it impossible for the state governor to dissolve elected local government councils at will, has been passed by the State House of Assembly. The amended law initiated by member representing Oke-Ogun Constituency, Mr. Kamal Fagbemi, now makes it unconstitutional for the state Governor to unilaterally dissolve democratically elected local government councils in the state. Read more
PDP kicks against inclusion of Justice Oyewole in Osun appeal panel (Nation)
The national leadership of the People’s Democratic Party (PDP) has rejected the inclusion of Justice Joseph Oyewole as member of the Osun State governorship election appeal tribunal. The PDP alleged Justice Oyewole has strong connections with the All Progressives Congress (APC), which is an interested party in the case under appeal. At a media briefing in Abuja on Tuesday, spokesman for the PDP, Kola Ologbondiyan, the main opposition party, said it has petitioned the President of the Court of Appeal, Justice Zainab Adamu Bulkachuwa. Read more
National Theatre’s General Manager dies in auto crash (Punch)
Dr Stella Oyedepo, the incumbent General Manager and the Chief executive Officer of the National Theatre in Lagos State is dead. She died late on Easter Monday while returning to Lagos from an official trip when her car was said to have rammed into an articulated vehicle at Sagamu along the Benin- Ijebu-|Ode Express Road. Mr Abiodun Abe, the Director in charge of Business Development at the NT confirmed the development to the News Agency of Nigeria on Tuesday through a telephone interview. Read more
NCC to prosecute institutions, schools that use pirated books (Nation)
The Nigerian Copyright Commission (NCC) Tuesday vowed to prosecute institutions and schools that use pirated books. It said it would work with the Nigerian Publishers Association (NPA) to explore ways of creating safe corridors for the distribution of legitimate books. NCC Director-General Mr John Asein, in a statement to mark the World Book and Copyright Day, held every April 23, said the fight against book piracy will be intensified. According to him, the Commission would continue to develop policies and strategies to facilitate a culture of respect for authorship and copyright works. Read more
Plateau tertiary institutions begin indefinite strike (Punch)
The Joint Union of Plateau Tertiary Institutions on Tuesday embarked on indefinite strike to press home their demand for more funding and improved infrastructure in the institutions. The union is also demanding employment of more personnel, and exemption of the various institutions from the Treasury Single Account, among others. Chairman of the Union, Mr. Paul Dakogol, told the News Agency of Nigeria in Jos that the strike was long overdue, following the decay in the state-owned institutions. Read more
Two ladies bag two-month jail for wearing skimpy dresses in Kaduna (Punch)
A Shari’a Court II sitting at Magajin Gari, Kaduna, on Tuesday sentenced 20-year-old Farida Taofiq and Raihana Abbas to two months in prison each for wearing skimpy dresses. Taofiq and Abbas, residents of Argungu road in Kaduna, were convicted after they pleaded guilty to “constituting public nuisance and indecent dressing.” The two convicts however pleaded for leniency saying they won’t repeat the crime. Read more
17 killed in Uganda after heavy rains, flooding (Punch)
At least 17 people – mostly children – died after heavy rains in eastern Uganda caused by flooding, police said on Tuesday. The rains hit the districts of Kamuli and Buyende during the night, with some people drowning in the flood waters and others hit by collapsing walls, the region’s police spokesperson Michael Kasadha said. “Many of the children could not quickly run away from the floods and it’s probably the reason why they died in large numbers,” he said. Read more
Notre-Dame fire: Rain threatens France’s damaged cathedral (BBC)
Architects working on preserving Notre-Dame are rushing to cover the cathedral before rain can cause further damage. Showers and even possible thunderstorms are forecast for the French capital on Tuesday evening. The cathedral’s vault, which partly collapsed in the fire, is already partly waterlogged after fire-fighting efforts. Architects fear that heavy rainfall could result in further collapse. Read more
Islamic State group claims Sri Lanka attacks (Guardian)
The Islamic State group on Tuesday said it was behind a devastating string of suicide attacks against churches and hotels in Sri Lanka that killed more than 320 people on Easter Sunday. The claim emerged more than 48 hours after the near-simultaneous blasts tore through three high-end hotels popular with foreigners and three churches packed with Christians marking Easter. It came after Sri Lanka’s government said initial investigations suggested the attack had been carried out as “retaliation” for shootings at two mosques in New Zealand last month that killed 50 people. Read more
Ukraine’s Zelensky plans to clean up parliament and military (BBC)
Aides to Ukraine’s President-elect Volodymyr Zelensky have announced anti-corruption plans, including scrapping MPs’ immunity from prosecution and making military purchases transparent. Halyna Yanchenko, a top official at the anti-corruption watchdog Nabu, said “MPs’ immunity must be consigned to the past”. She spoke on Hromadske TV. Aide Ivan Aparshyn said state defence orders “will be as open as possible”. Mr Zelensky, a popular comedian, won with 73% of the vote on Sunday. Read more
Polish teachers double down on strike for higher wages (Guardian)
An estimated couple of thousand teachers from across Poland demonstrated outside the education ministry Tuesday, two weeks into a national strike for higher pay that is challenging the right-wing government in an election year. Protesters carried orange signs with black exclamation points as well as banners with slogans such as “high expectations, low pay,” “we’re fed up” and “stop belittling teachers”. Most schools across the EU member of 38 million people have been closed since teacher unions launched the strike to call for a 30 percent salary hike. Read more
Mum spared jail for nightclub bottle attack because she has a child (Metro)
A woman who bottled an innocent reveller on a nightclub dance floor was let off jail because she has a young child. Sophie Millard, 23, smashed the bottle of Budweiser into the face of Ryan Jones who needed stitches to an eye wound. Single mum Millard was facing 12 months in jail for the attack which was caught on CCTV. But a judge suspended the sentence because ‘it would seem like an eternity’ for her four-year-old daughter. Read more
UAE launches ‘Ministry of Possibilities’ (Punch)
The United Arab Emirates on Tuesday unveiled a new branch of government, a Ministry of Possibilities, three years after launching a department in charge of happiness. Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al-Maktoum, the UAE’s premier and ruler of Dubai, said the “unconventional” ministry would function “without a minister” but with input from the whole cabinet. “We launched the world’s first virtual ‘Ministry of Possibilities’, a new government work system in the UAE,” he said on Twitter. Read more
Osundairo brothers accused of Jussie Smollett attack suing lawyers for defamation – but not Jussie (Metro)
The two brothers who were accused by Jussie Smollett of attacking him are suing the Empire actor’s lawyers, Mark Geragos and Tina Glandian, for defamation. ‘We have sat back and watched lie after lie being fabricated by us in the media, only so one big lie can continue to have life. These lies are destroying our character and reputation in our personal and professional lives,’ Abel and Ola Osundairo said in a statement given by their attorney. ‘Those who know us personally know we don’t have hate for anyone, that is not who we are. Read more
Unai Emery rates Arsenal’s top four chances after Chelsea slip up against Burnley (Metro)
Unai Emery remains confident Arsenal can secure Champions League qualification but admits Chelsea’s failure to beat Burnley on Monday should act as a warning to his side. Arsenal missed the opportunity to move into third place on Sunday after Crystal Palace became only the second visiting team to win at the Emirates this season. Emery’s side were let off the hook, to a degree, after Tottenham and Manchester United both lost over the course of a highly eventful weekend, while Chelsea were unable to take maximum points against Burnley at Stamford Bridge. Read more
Solskjaer wants Man Utd with new mindset in Man City clash (Guardian)
Manchester United manager Ole Gunnar Solskjaer Tuesday said he hopes the Red Devils change their mindset when they host neighbours Manchester City in Wednesday’s English Premier League clash. “It’s about changing mindsets and making sure our heads are ready because anyone’s heads will drop when you lose like that,” Solskjaer told Sky Sports Premier League. United’s hopes of clinching a Uefa Champions League spot with a top-four finish at the end of the season hit the rocks after a humbling 4 – 0 thrashing from Everton at Goodison Park on Sunday. Read more